THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 22, 1996 TAG: 9606220384
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ATLANTA LENGTH: 65 lines
So many elders have highlighted these U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, you forget that there are fresh faces out there, full of youth and awe, big smiles and big plans.
One of them is Portsmouth's Latasha Colander, 19, a month removed from her sophomore year at North Carolina. Norfolk State sophomore Ramon Clay, 20, is one of them, too. Sort of.
Colander is not above wearing a just-happy-to-be-here gaze, not yet so jaded that she can't marvel at her surroundings or reveal her grandest goal - reach the finals of the 100-meter hurdles.
On the other hand, Clay, a 200-meter man, has an approach best characterized as respect all, fear none - and everybody get out of the way.
Hoping to run beside her idol Gail Devers before the weekend is through, Colander high-stepped toward that dream Friday by easily qualifying for today's quarterfinals, as did Norfolk's Tonya Williams. Both finished third in their heats.
Clay, a Nashville, Tenn. resident, didn't just qualify. He smoked nearly the entire field in the first round of the 200 meters, including the cruise-control likes of Michael Johnson and Carl Lewis, to burst into today's quarterfinals.
Clay clocked a personal-best 20.12 to win his heat while Lewis was second at 20.30. Only Jeff Williams, a heat winner in 20.10, ran faster than Clay, the field's second-youngest runner.
Two-time world champion Johnson trotted in at a pedestrian 20.61 to win his heat, conserving energy as he did in the 400. ``With these rounds, you're not going out there to impress anyone,'' Johnson said. ``You go out there to survive.''
Clay, Norfolk State coach Steve Riddick said, can't necessarily survive that way.
``These kids are young. They could never do what Michael Johnson's doing, they're not experienced like that,'' Riddick said, referring to Clay and his other sprinters, Tim Montgomery and Brian Lewis, who ran well in the 100. ``They've gotta run all out. We trained for four rounds.''
And so Clay went out there and impressed.
``I feel like I'm strong enough to go through four rounds at top speed,'' said Clay, whose previous best was a wind-aided 20.36. He was not as taken, however, with the competition.
``I respect the guys for what they've done in the past,'' Clay said. ``But I don't look up to them, because if you look up to them you're already beaten. They've made history. It's my turn now.''
Colander takes a softer view of her place here. Like Clay, she was the second-youngest to reach the quarterfinals. And if she can make it to Sunday's final, Colander said she could leave for a scheduled two-week European track tour a happy woman.
``This is like the Olympics right now, it seems that hard,'' said Colander. ``I've been in the world juniors, but nothing this big. This is the best.''
Colander, who was eighth in the NCAA outdoor championships this year and fourth indoor, said Devers' presence will keep her going here, just as she regularly uses Devers, who nearly lost a foot to Graves' disease five years ago, as motivation.
``Just the inspiration of pursuing something and going after it and fighting,'' said Colander, who said she's met Devers once. ``Sometimes we wonder why we're running; you get into it and you do it so much, over and over. And when the big meets come you look for some inspiration.''
Clay was only too eager to show a legend, Carl Lewis, his heels. Colander would cherish the chance to try against Devers.
``I'd love it,'' Colander said. ``I'm gonna focus on running. But I'm gonna love it.'' by CNB